Shaped charge projectile



Feb. 28, 1961 KRAY 2,972,948

SHAPED CHARGE PROJECTILE Filed Sept. 16, 1952 1N VENTOR RAYMOND H. KRAYATTORNEYS SHAPED CHARGE PROJECTILE Raymond H. Kray, Box 607, IndianHead, Md.

Filed Sept. 16, 1952, Ser. No. 309,957

1 Claim. (Cl. 102-56) (Granted under Title 35, US. Code (1952), see.266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by orfor the Government of the United States of America for governmentalpurposes without the payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.

The present invention relates generally to explosive chargesparticularly as employed in projectiles, and more specifically to shapedcharges.

In the projectile explosive charge art it has been found that the armorpiercing ability of a given quantity of explosive charge may beoptimized by forming the forward portion of the charge wit-h anappropriate configuration. Such charges are generally referred to asshaped charges, and their armor piercing effectiveness results fromproviding that shape in the front of the charge which affords thegreatest directivity and concentration of explosive force in a localizedarea. A particularly effective configuration for such shaped charges isthat obtained by forming a conical hollow or recess in the forward endof the charge. In accordance with the present invention, it iscontemplated to improve the pentrating effectiveness of shaped chargesby complementing the shaped charge with a pocket of chemical reactants,which when ignited by the explosion or heat of explosion of the chargeproduce a vigorous,-very high temperature, exothermic reaction andprovide a substantial quantity of molten metallic mass in the core ofthe gaseous products of charge detonation, thus adding to the heat andehergy of the detonation and at the same time enhancing the penetratingproperties of the explosive.

It is therefore one object of the present invention to complement ashaped charge with chemically interreactive materials, which when setoff by charge detonation increases the energy content of the explosion.

Another object of the present invention is to complement a shaped chargewith exothermically interreactive materials, which when set off bycharge detonation enhances the core of the gaseous products ofdetonation with a molten mass of metal.

Another object of the present invention is to complement a shaped chargewith exothermically interreactive materials, such as thermite or amixture of iron oxide, potassium perchlorate, and metallic titanium,which, when set off by charge detonation, increases the energy contentof the explosion and enhances the core of the gaseous products of shapedcharge detonation with a molten mass of metal.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this inventionwill be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood byreference to the following detailed description when considered inconnection with the accompanying drawing, which is a longitudinalsectional view of the forward portion of a projectile showing the shapedcharge, the pocket of reactants complementary thereto, and a ballisticnose or cap for the projectile.

The projectile 10, whose forward portion is shown in the drawing,comprises as conventional components the substantially cylindrical maincasing 11, capped by the ballistic nose 13, and containing the shapedexplosive charge 12. Other conventional projectile components (notshown) may of course be included in or on the projectile as deemedappropriate or desirable, as for example a detonator and/or a primer, anarming fuse, a turning band, and the like. shaped charge chosen for thepurpose of illustrating the present invention is the type wherein aconical recess is formed in the forward portion of the charge, which isreferred to above as an effective armor piercing configuration.

In addition to the foregoing conventional components of a shaped chargeprojectile, there is provided in accordance with the present invention acapsule or pocket 14 containing a composition 17 of exothermicallyinterreactive materials producing, when ignited or set off by thedetonation or heat of detonation of the charge 12, a high temperatureand a mass of molten metal. Composition 17 may be, for example, thermite(iron oxide and aluminum), or a mixture containing iron oxide, potassiumperchlorate, and metallic titanium. In order to fix the location of thecomposition 17 and to facilitate its positioning in the forward portionof the charge 12, a container, pocket, or capsule is formed therefor, asfor example by the nested cones 15 and 16, which preferably is formed ofaluminum. It will be noted that in the preferred and illustratedembodiment the use of nested cones to form the pocket 14 provides aconfiguration which substantially coincides with the desired conicalconfiguration of the forward end of the shaped charge.

In use of the present invention hereinabove described in detail withreference to one specific embodiment, upon detonation of the shapedcharge 12, the heat generated ignites the composition 1'7 of thermite orthe like, which through its own reaction generates substantialquantities of heat and provides very high temperatures. As a result ofthis reaction, the energy content of the explosion is elevated and thereis produced a substantial quantity of high temperature molten metal massresulting from disintegration of the metallic cones 15 and 16 plus theproducts of combustion of composition 17. This combined molten metallicmass is focused by the configuration of the shaped charge onto the coreof the gaseous products of the shaped charge detonation such that thepenetrating power of the core is exhanced.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention arepossible in the light of the above teachings. It is therefore to beunderstood that within the scope of the appended claim the invention maybe practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed is:

in an explosive projectile, the combination of a casing having a nosedetachably secured thereto, a portion of said casing. and nose forming acircumferential groove, a shaped charge having a cone shaped recess inthe forwardend thereof with the wall defining said recess converging ina rearwardly direction, said charge being disposed and confined withinsaid casing and capable of producing a jet having a potent andconcentrated striking force when fired, a sealed cone shaped capsuledisposed within said recess and having inner and outer mutually spacedwalls diverging in a rearwardly direction, a flange on each of saidwalls at the base of said cone shaped capsule in snug engagement withrespect to each other and disposed within said groove and in snugPatented Feb. 28, 1 961,,

As will be noted, the

engagement with said casing and nose for locking said capsule to saidcasing and maintaining the capsule within said recess, a chemicallyinter-reactive metallic material sealed Within said capsule contiguousWith said shaped charge and activated thereby and concurrently therewithfor producing a mass of molten metal, the heavier molecules of whichintermingle With said jet sufiiciently to form an integral part thereofat the leading end of the jet thereby to increase the striking force ofthe jet.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS CookJuly 22, 1952 Jasse Feb. 17, 1953 Weiss Feb. 16, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTSGreat Britain Nov. 6, 1945 'Jreat Britain Oct. 10, 1951

